Retrievers

Retrievers Winner
Joe Pope

Pintails are Joe Pope's favorite duck. In fact, he was once nicknamed "Pintail Pope" by his hunting partners. While duck hunting last season in South Carolina at a place he calls Hay Hill, he was accompanied by Pearl, a four-year-old yellow Lab that belongs to one of his good friends. He and a hunting partner had already taken a nice mixed bag of wigeon and gadwalls when a pair of pintails suddenly cruised into the decoys. 

"My friend shot the drake and I grabbed my camera as Pearl went racing out to get the duck. I knew the light and angle were going to be just right for a good picture. She made a great retrieve pounding through the water. She isn't big enough to clear a coffee table with her tail, but she has the motor to get after it. She is really coming into her own," Pope says. 

Retrievers Runner-Up: Justin Tangeman